Free desexing if you’re lucky

By Sarah Schwager
A HAMPTON Park vet is offering pet owners the chance to win back their pet desexing costs in a bid to reduce the number of dogs and cats in the town.
The initiative is part of the second annual National Desexing Month, which runs through August, with the slogan ‘Too many cats and dogs… Not enough homes!’
Melinda Griffiths, practice manager at the Hampton Park Veterinary Clinic, said the competition aimed to highlight the importance of having pets desexed.
“Especially with spring coming up – the kitten season – we really need to get the message out,” she said.
Everyone who has had their pet desexed during August at the clinic goes into the competition to win back their money.
Ms Griffiths, who worked at the RSPCA before starting private practice nine years ago, said she had experienced first-hand the problems that came with not desexing pets.
“The amount of kittens and cats that come through during summer and spring is just phenomenal,” she said.
National Desexing Month is run by the National Desexing Network (NDN) and aims to end pet overpopulation in Australia.
According to NDN, desexing will also reduce the risk of pets getting cancer, or other diseases of the reproductive organs, acute uterine infections and breast cancer.
NDN research shows female pets can suffer from physical and nutritional exhaustion if continually breeding and pets generally live longer and healthier lives if desexed.
Pets are also less prone to wander and fight, are less likely to get lost or injured, and less likely to suffer from anti-social behaviors.
The Hampton Park Veterinary Clinic is located on the corner of Somerville Road and Outlook Drive, Hampton Park, phone 9702 8811.